United States concerned by 'Turkish incident' in northern Syria, Tillerson says

Reuters Staff

1 Min Read

LONDON (Reuters) - The United States is concerned about the Turkish incident in northern Syria and is asking both sides to show restraint, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Monday, according to a pool report.

A man is seen through a broken window at the offices of Turkish Cypriot newspaper Afrika, which was attacked by supporters of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Monday over the newspaper’s headlines criticising the Turkish army’s campaign in Afrin in northern Syria, in the Turkish-administered northern part of Nicosia, Cyprus January 22, 2018. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou

Turkey shelled targets in northern Syria on Monday and said it would swiftly crush the U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG fighters who control the Afrin region, amid growing international concern over its three-day-old military operation.

“We are concerned about the Turkish incident in Northern Syria,” Tillerson said while on a trip to London, according to a pool report supplied to Reuters.

“We recognize and fully appreciate Turkey’s legitimate right to protect its own citizens from terrorist elements,” he said.

Tillerson said he is asking that both sides show restraint and minimize civilian casualties, and that the U.S. is aiming to “see what we can do to work together to address turkey’s legitimate security concerns.”